Giving Thanks and Doing Planks

Week 1: https://www.strava.com/activities/2853361170
Week 2: https://www.strava.com/activities/2869860970
Week 3: https://www.strava.com/activities/2889006694
Week 4: https://www.strava.com/activities/2905404761
Also an instagram story highlight

If you haven't noticed, I love participating in campaigns and contests that relate to my life and things I support. During November, one of the campus organizations hosted #GivingThanksAndDoingPlanks, which made my heart leap when I saw the email announcement, and that is no exaggeration. I was so into it, I did one every day. The posts were to be submitted on their Facebook page, and you could make a new entry every day to encourage both healthy living and gratefulness during the month of Thanksgiving. Faith and fitness! Two of my favorite things! So I got creative and found something, big or small, that I was thankful for every day of the month.

These pictures below are out of order, but the above links to my Strava posts have them in order with their short descriptions. I think it is so important to find ways to see good things in every day, even if it seems like a "bad day."
Attitude of Gratitude.

And would you believe that I won!? I did! I won an Amazon Echo and a UTC Columbia pullover. I also got a new connection with the wonderful Carol Oglesby of UTC Healthy Living Initiative and Center For Student Wellbeing, as well as UTC Healthy Mocs on Facebook and Instagram. It also gave me something fun to be involved in throughout the month and ways to find thankfulness.

"Give thanks in all circumstances. For this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." 
1 Thessalonians 5:18


Christmas shopping ** My dog



All the great holiday things this week: family, pets, Thanksgiving, Christmas, home ** Making holiday goodies to share (pumpkin spice Chex Mix)



New UTC clothes ** The "thankful bucket" I made for our dorm living room



Some time with God-Choose Joy! ** Birthday celebrations and carrot cake ** A free dark chocolate strawberry smoothie from the Smoothie King app



My first post of the month: at conference being thankful for the race and my roommate for the trip ** Vibrating foam rollers and chocolate milk in the weight room and getting stronger!



A class that gets me outside and in the community ** Pumpkins!



Class cancelled, so I got to take a nap and eat hot lunch on a very cold day ** Hotels!



Heading to region! and a new Clif Bar ** Cooking dinner


A new PR! For me and several others. ** Simply thankful



Seasonal pajamas ** Coloring (yes, it was for class)



Christmas lights (though for year-round decoration) ** Christmas socks and shoes!



Umbrellas and rain boots (essential for college!) ** Air freshener (especially fall scented and after a run in the pouring rain)



Coffee! ** Playing (yoga?) with some goats!



Heading home for Thanksgiving Break!

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A Fellow Runner Would Know

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One of my classes this semester is Creative Writing, and it kind of makes me feel like I am back in elementary and middle school! It's not as easy as I thought from the start, but I am enjoying it. When I was younger, I would whip out poems, stories, plays, and basically anything at any time whether for an assignment but more often for fun. Now it is harder for me (as for all kids since the school system has changed so much...that's for another discussion...) to make up things rather than base it off of real-world knowledge. We all need this, though. Over the semester I hope to be able to share some of my writing! I've already tweeted a couple haikus at Alexi Pappas, based on her "bravey" trend. Writing poems again has been more fun than I imagined.

This one is the ballad for my folder in class. Ballads have a specific rhyme scheme abcb stanzas, alternating between iambic tetrameter (4 stressed syllables) and iambic trimeter (3 stressed syllables). It also must tell a story with characters and setting. This made it a little tricky, but it's a fun challenge! For some reason, the first story that came to me was someone in the park, so I ran with it (no pun intended), and kept going on to make it funny--something personal and relateable to my running friends and community.

A Fellow Runner Would Know

I have this pain inside my gut.

A twist, a turn it does.

My thoughts, they run; my heart does race.

I start to get a buzz.

The trail keeps going on ahead;                                         

I’ve gone so far this way.

I could turn back, but it’s still long.

“I have to stop!” I say.

No one hears me except the trees.

It’s miserable to wait.

I look around and find a spot.

I step behind the gate.

Bladder empty, ready to go,

I feel much better now.

I turn around and hear a sound—

I was seen by a cow.

What About the Waffles?

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I can't believe that I forgot this...

At the very beginning of summer, I got the sudden urge to get a waffle iron after I saw a cute idea on instagram.  Mom and I bought one at walmart, and I had some friends over, but I never shared it!

Luckily, Mom didn't get home until we were finished cooking, because she would've died seeing all the ingreedients we had out on the counter!  I can't remember them all, but here are the ones we chose from:  pumpkin, cinnamon chips, chocolate chips, Resee's Pieces, peanut butter, oreos, caramel chips, candy cane Hershey kissees, marshmallows, sprinkles, cocoa, Yorks, white chocolate chips, bananas...you see where I'm going.

This pucture does not do Katlyn's waffle mix a bit of justice. You should've seen all the ingreedients she threw in there. I'm surprised that it even cooked!

We call poor Katlyn a walking struggle. Here is just one small example of her typical self. But the beautiful thing is, she is such a happy, positive person!  We make great best friends; she keeps me loose, and I keep her from losing things. 

Mine was Resee's Pieces, marshmallows, banana, and chocolate syrup!

This is the prettiest waffle I have ever made.

As usual with food at my house...one picture with food in our mouths...

and one without!

Frisco always has to join the party.

Like the slogan Megan made up for us?

 

This spontaneous decision to have a little brunch party was a great way to start off my summer with lots of laughs and fun story telling and talks about whatever may come up.  It's a blessing to have friends like mine!